Moore Means Less - $100M
TORONTO—On the heels of a major shakeup in the heirarchy and ownership at Canadian business forms giant Moore Corp., new CEO Robert Burton announced a $100 million cost savings initiative over the next 12 months to 18 months that will see the company cut about 10 percent of its workforce.
Burton, the former chairman and CEO of World Color Press who was named president and CEO on December 21 following the resignation of Ed Tyler, feels Moore is too "top heavy" and has set out to eliminate a "significant amount of redundancy within the organization." The cuts were slated to begin last month and continue for a 30- to 60-day period.
"After an initial review if the organization, it is, in my opinion, glaringly apparent that the results of the company are unacceptable," Burton says. "The costs of this company are completely out of line with our revenue. As a result of this misalignment, I am initiating actions that are designed to reduce our expenses by $100 million during the course of the next 12 to 18 months."
Among the areas that will come under review are productivity goals, capital spending and return on investment. Training initiatives, financial controls, business processes and the disposition of non-essential assets (including real estate) are other items that will be examined.
The reduction in employees, which will also see managers take on more responsibilities, will result in lower operating costs, improved cost of goods sold, improved operating efficiency, swifter decision making and better communications.
Burton will personally run the forms and labels business as the senior manager. The segment accounts for 50 percent of Moore's consolidated revenue.
"I am not pleased with the results of this unit," he says. "I am unwilling to turn the leadership of the unit over to anyone until I personally understand what needs to be done to ensure its sustained success."
- Places:
- TORONTO